Hostess with the Mostess®

Father’s Day is this Sunday – so a lot of you are probably gearing up for some sort of family celebration – which more often than not will include a special meal…which of course deserves a special table! Chances are that Dad might not get quite as excited about those stunning floral centerpieces as mom would, so you might have to think outside the box a little when it comes to choosing your Father’s Day tabletop theme.

The pastime my own father loves most is golf, so the golf-themed tabletop design you see here was created with that in mind. This tabletop was fun & easy to put together – and I’ve included a few instructions below if you’d like to recreate something similar at home… Remember that even if your own father/husband/SO isn’t a golfer, you can still adapt this concept for whatever sport or hobby he loves most!

For the Golf-themed Centerpiece:
You’ll need:
• 2 plastic box picture frames (1 ea: 8×10 / 5×7)
• small flat of sod (any kind) from your local nursery
• 1 tall bamboo skewer
• 9 golf balls, 1 golf tee
• solid craft paper & sticker numbers
• 3 small clear bowls
• 2 sheets solid 12×12″ scrapbook paper for “table runner”

Directions: Remove the back (chipboard) of the picture box frames and replace them with sections of sod, cut down to fit within the plastic frames. This will create your “tee box” (larger box frame) and “green” (smaller box frame). Insert the golf tee into the “tee box” and place a golf ball on the tee (secure with glue if you like). Next, cut a skinny diamond-shape from your construction paper, fold it around the blunt end of the bamboo skewer and glue the ends together to create the flag. Embellish the flag with numbers or your dad’s initial(s), then stick the flag into the “green”. Flip one of your clear bowls upside down and use it as a “pedastal” to elevate the “tee box” and give the arrangement some dimension. Place the entire centerpiece on the scrapbook paper “runner”. Fill the 2 remaining bowls with 4 golf balls each and set them on either side of the main centerpiece.

For the Table Settings:
You’ll need:
• 12×12″ sheets of scrapbook paper to serve as placemats. Choose papers with a modern argyle pattern or other golf-themed print. *The colors in your “placemats” should work well with grass-green and will determine the color palette for the table.
• white plates
• utensils, napkins, construction paper, utensils, and cups in colors that match your theme
• golf tees and sticker numbers (for the placecard holders)

Directions:
Set the table just as you normally would – starting with the scrapbook paper “placemats”. Turn the napkin sat a 45º angles so they look like a diamond. Using the golf tees, construction paper, and sticker numbers, make little place card “flags” for each setting. Flip the tee upside down so that it stands on it’s head and glue the actual flag portion to the sharp end of the tee). If you have a hard time getting the place cards to stay standing on their own, secure them to the napkin with a little bit of glue from a gluestick.

**If you have a large family or are creating multiple tables, you can always name each table after a famous golf course and tell guests they are at “Pebble Beach, Hole 4″ or “St. Andrews, Hole 9″ – and so on…